“I’ve heard it all before,” she says, balancing
a drink tray against her hip. “How can you
not? I’m surrounded by drunk guys for eight
hours at a time.” And drunk girls, too, I add
silently, pushing the empty glass across
the table. The band’s lead singer circles
the room with a red plastic bucket. I smile
at the waitress and her death-defying chest—
I never take those kinds of fearless risks
with clothing anymore. My old age turned
me into a spinster. One day at the mall
I realized I was shopping for sensible shoes
and I nearly cried for my discarded youth.
She brings me another cocktail and I settle
back into my chair, quiet, dissonant, still.
Josette Torres received her MFA in Creative Writing from Virginia Tech. She also holds a BA in English and Creative Writing from Purdue University. Her work has previously appeared in Star 82 Review, The New Verse News, Palaver, and elsewhere. She currently lives in Blacksburg, Virginia, where she works as an IT professional at Virginia Tech.
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